What Firstrade Securities does

Firstrade Securities Inc. is a privately held online brokerage founded in 1985 and headquartered in Flushing, New York, operating as a FINRA and SIPC member firm. The company offers commission-free trading across stocks, ETFs, options, mutual funds, and fixed income via a digital-only distribution model spanning the Invest 3.0 web platform (launched December 2025) and native iOS and Android applications. Customer access is self-serve with no minimum deposit requirement; revenue is generated primarily through interest on margin loans and uninvested cash balances held in customer accounts, supplemented by a $19.95 broker-assisted trade tier. The platform integrates third-party research and tooling from Morningstar, OptionsPlay, Briefing.com, Zacks, Trading Central, Benzinga, Plaid (account funding), Capitalize (401(k) rollovers), and GainsKeeper (tax reporting), with FirstradeGPT (Beta) providing an AI-powered research assistant built on Fiscal.ai using OpenAI and Anthropic models. Recent product expansions have added Overnight Trading for 1,200+ securities, an interactive Options Builder, and day-one support for FINRA's 2026 intraday margin framework.

Name

Firstrade Securities

Legal name

Firstrade Securities Inc.

Website

https://firstrade.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1985

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Firstrade Securities is a privately held, commission-free online brokerage founded in 1985 that offers self-directed US and international retail investors trading in stocks, ETFs, options, mutual funds, and fixed income via web and mobile platforms, monetizing primarily through interest on margin loans and cash balances.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Discount Brokerage

NAICS

Securities and Commodity Contracts Intermediation and Brokerage (5231), Securities, Commodity Contracts, and Other Financial Investments and Related Activities (523)

SIC

Security Brokers, Dealers & Flotation Companies (6211), Security & Commodity Brokers, Dealers, Exchanges & Services (6200)

akta.pro primary industry

Discount & Online Retail Brokerage (FSAEACAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Digital Brokerage & Self-Directed Investing Platforms (FSAGAEAC), Execution-Only / Self-Directed Investing Platforms (FSAAAAAI)

Keywords

• Commission-free brokerage
• Online stock trading
• Retail investment platform
• Options trading
• Mutual fund investing

Headquarters

HQ city

Flushing

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Interest Income on Margin and Cash Balances: Firstrade generates revenue primarily through interest earned on customer margin loans and cash balances held in customer accounts. As a commission-free broker, the company does not charge per-trade commissions but monetizes customer assets through margin lending interest rates and interest earned on uninvested cash (cash sweep programs).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Firstrade Securities is a commission-free online brokerage that lets self-directed retail investors trade stocks, ETFs, options, mutual funds, and fixed income through its proprietary web platform (Invest 3.0) and iOS/Android mobile apps. The firm monetizes customer assets primarily through interest income on margin loans and uninvested cash balances rather than per-trade commissions, and supplies integrated third-party research and AI-powered tools to support trading decisions.

Product overview

Firstrade Securities is a commission-free online brokerage offering a unified trading platform with multiple access channels and integrated tools. The core offering consists of Firstrade Invest 3.0 (redesigned web platform launched December 2025), mobile apps for iOS and Android, and a comprehensive suite of investment products including Stocks/ETFs, Options, Mutual Funds (11,000+), and Fixed Income. The platform is enhanced by Options Builder (November 2025) for options strategy exploration, Options Wizard/OptionsPlay for professional-grade options analytics, and FirstradeGPT (Beta) as an AI-powered investment research tool. Extended-hours and overnight trading capabilities (1,200+ securities) enable round-the-clock market participation. Third-party integrations include Morningstar, Trading Central, Briefing.com, Zacks, and Benzinga for research; Plaid for account aggregation; Capitalize for retirement rollovers; TurboTax for tax preparation; and GainsKeeper for tax reporting automation.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Firstrade Invest 3.0 Web Trading Platform Proprietary web-based trading platform that enables self-directed investors to access their brokerage accounts, place trades, monitor portfolios, and use integrated research and analytics tools from any desktop browser.
• Firstrade Mobile App
• Stocks/ETFs Trading
• Options Trading
• Mutual Funds
• Fixed Income
• Overnight Trading Extended-hours trading capability allowing investors to trade over 1,200 stocks and ETFs from 8:00 PM to 4:00 AM ET (Sunday night through Friday morning), enabling reaction to breaking news outside regular market hours.
• Brokerage Account (Individual and Joint)
• Retirement Account (Traditional, Roth, Rollover IRA)

Quantifiable outcome

• 4.5-star ease-of-use rating for website (5 consecutive years)
• +2 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration11 records

AI capability8 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• CapitalizeminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCapitalize provides retirement account rollover services that integrate with Firstrade's platform, enabling customers to easily transfer retirement accounts (IRAs, 401(k)s) to Firstrade. This partnership drives new customer acquisition by simplifying the account transfer process.
• Volleyball WorldminorGTM or Marketing PartnerFirstrade has a sponsorship or marketing partnership with Volleyball World, the governing body for international volleyball. This partnership serves as a brand marketing and awareness initiative.
• OptionsPlaycoreTechnology or IntegrationOptionsPlay provides advanced options analytics and trading research integrated directly into the Firstrade platform. The partnership brings institutional-quality options analysis, strategy recommendations, and market insights to Firstrade customers at no additional cost.
• MorningstarcoreTechnology or IntegrationMorningstar provides investment research, fund analysis, stock ratings, and portfolio building tools integrated into the Firstrade platform. Firstrade customers gain access to Morningstar's comprehensive analyst research and data to inform investment decisions.
• Briefing.comcoreTechnology or IntegrationBriefing.com delivers real-time market news, economic data, and trading research to Firstrade customers. The partnership provides day traders and active investors with timely market intelligence and analysis.
• ZackscoreTechnology or IntegrationZacks provides stock research, earnings estimates, analyst recommendations, and investment screening tools integrated into the Firstrade platform. The partnership gives customers access to Zacks' quantitative research methodology and investment insights.
• Trading CentralcoreTechnology or IntegrationTrading Central delivers technical analysis, chart patterns, and trading signals integrated into the Firstrade platform. The partnership provides customers with automated technical research to complement fundamental analysis.
• BenzingacoreTechnology or IntegrationBenzinga provides market news, financial media content, and trading insights to Firstrade customers. The partnership delivers real-time market news and commentary to support investment decision-making.
• PlaidcoreTechnology or IntegrationPlaid provides secure bank account linking and authentication services that enable Firstrade customers to connect their external bank accounts for funding and transfers. The Plaid integration streamlines the account funding process through secure credential-less bank connections.
• Fiscal.aicoreTechnology or IntegrationFiscal.ai provides the AI technology powering FirstradeGPT, Firstrade's proprietary AI-powered research assistant. The partnership enables natural language search and analysis of market information, helping investors discover investment opportunities and answer investing questions.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• TradeStation: Online brokerage focused on active and options traders with advanced analytics, strategy backtesting, and direct market access. Comparable to Firstrade on the active-trader segment, options tooling, and commission-light pricing.
• Interactive Brokers: Discount/online retail broker offering commission-free stock and ETF trading plus advanced options analytics and global market access. Directly comparable on product breadth, options focus, and self-directed investor base, with stronger professional-trader positioning.
• Robinhood Markets: Commission-free, mobile-first retail brokerage targeting self-directed investors with stocks, ETFs, options, and crypto. Closest direct competitor on pricing model, target customer (self-directed retail), and digital-first GTM.
• Ally Invest: Online discount brokerage offering commission-free stocks, ETFs, and options trading alongside Ally's banking products. Comparable on self-directed retail focus, low-cost trading, and beginner-investor positioning.
• Webull: Commission-free mobile-first brokerage with options analytics, extended-hours trading, and a self-directed retail audience. Direct competitor on platform design, $0 options contract fees, and active-trader focus.

Broad incumbents

• Merrill Edge (Bank of America): Bank-affiliated online brokerage offering commission-free trading integrated with BofA banking and Merrill wealth management. Overlaps with Firstrade on retail brokerage, retirement accounts, and research, with materially larger distribution.
• Fidelity Investments: Full-service incumbent offering commission-free retail brokerage, mutual fund supermarket (Fidelity funds), retirement products, and proprietary research. Overlaps with Firstrade on mutual fund selection, retirement accounts, and self-directed trading, at much larger scale.
• Charles Schwab: Large incumbent offering commission-free retail brokerage alongside wealth management, banking, and institutional services. Overlaps with Firstrade on retail self-directed trading but operates a much broader portfolio at far greater scale.
• E*TRADE from Morgan Stanley: Online retail brokerage owned by Morgan Stanley offering commission-free stocks/ETFs/options plus research and retirement accounts. Direct overlap on self-directed retail and options trading; broader distribution and balance sheet via Morgan Stanley.

Emerging players

• Public.com: Mobile-first commission-free brokerage with fractional shares, options, and a social/community investing layer. Targets the same self-directed beginner-investor segment as Firstrade, with a younger demographic skew.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/firstrade
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@firstrade
• Facebookfacebook.com/firstrade

Compliance5 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Firstrade Securities